Friday, August 28, 2015

Name Droppings: Swiftly Speaking

Here a few bites of an Apple to start:

"In an open letter to Apple, Taylor Swift has criticized the company’s new streaming music service for failing to pay artists for a free three-month trial. Writing on her Tumblr page Sunday in a posting titled ‘‘To Apple, Love Taylor,’’ Swift said she would withhold her album ‘‘1989’’ from Apple Music, which launches June 30. The pop star called Apple’s plan not to compensate artists, writers, or producers during the three-month trial ‘‘shocking, disappointing, and completely unlike this historically progressive and generous company.’’ Swift said she was speaking up for the music community at large, not for her own personal gain. Three months, she said, ‘‘is a long time to go unpaid.’’

"Taylor Swift on Sunday took another swing at online music services, this time at Apple by keeping her platinum-selling album ‘‘1989’’ off its new streaming service. In an open letter, Swift criticized the tech giant for its three-month free trial period in which musicians won’t get paid. Apple, she said, should cover the costs of the free trial and pay artists, producers, and writers during the period. The 25-year-old musician and song-writer is quickly becoming a leading voice for artists’ rights. Last year, she wrote an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal on her concerns about free streaming and other online business models that devalue musicians’ work. In her Tumblr post ‘‘To Apple, Love Taylor,’’ she said artists should not have to shoulder the burden of Apple’s promotional costs. ‘‘I find it to be shocking, disappointing, and completely unlike this historically progressive and generous company,’’ Swift wrote. Yet Spotify has thrived since Swift pulled ‘‘1989’’ off the service; it doubled the number of paying subscribers to 20 million over the past year. Swift’s criticism of Apple could hurt the company’s image, however, especially as other musicians and artists join her call for greater compensation from online services. Apple Music debuts June 30 with a monthly $10 streaming subscription plan that sets in after a free trial. Apple will also offer a free Internet radio service and continue to sell downloads of songs and albums on iTunes. Apple declined to comment Sunday."

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